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My first job out of university was as a proofreader. People hear that and picture something calm, maybe a little dull. Nobody imagines it as a job that could push someone into a fear of leaving their own house, or into needing antidepressants just to function. The masking required in an office setting, however, drained everything I had. The work itself suited me. Long stretches of quiet, focused attention on a page, checking for consistency, catching errors other people had m

Sometimes, the wish to help can become part of the problem. And this does not happen only in psychotherapy. In families, friendships and romantic relationships, we can sometimes find ourselves repeatedly occupying familiar positions: the person who needs to be rescued, the person who must rescue everyone else, or the person who is blamed for what has gone wrong. These patterns can become so familiar that we barely notice them.

Before I tried psychedelics I wasn't much interested in drugs. Perhaps a part of my neurotic tendencies was that I was terrified of losing control of myself and mostly stayed away from caffeine, alcohol, and cannabis. Psychedelics, though, weren't just a drug, but an opportunity for a breakthrough. I am Clare Ashcraft, a twenty-three-year-old writer living in Ohio, and in this blog I share my experience with psilocybin (magic mushrooms).

At 24, I have two degrees, I am a published author of over 15 titles, and I had worked my way into a senior editorial position at a children's publishing house. I was building the kind of career I had imagined for myself, and in Cornwall, the place I’m lucky enough to have made my home. Then I was made redundant. Since losing my job, I have applied for roles in my industry, as well as hospitality and retail jobs that I assumed would be easier to find.

I was born and raised in the UK, where it is easy to look away. But, as an Indonesian part of the diaspora, I can’t help but ache as the land my ancestors lived on is burned and torn apart. By the end of September 2026, an estimated 1.92 million hectares of Indonesia have burned. The dry conditions behind the fires were caused by a natural climate pattern in which the surface of the tropical Pacific Ocean becomes unusually warm.

My brother was my best friend before he was anything else. Not just family, not just the person I happened to grow up next to, but the person I called first, the person who knew which version of a story I was telling and which version was true. My name is Israel Temmie. I am a freelance writer, and much of what I do now involves trying to make sense of experiences by putting them into words.

I met Mark Moore while desperately looking for a flat in London. We immediately connected over our passion for electronic music and the club scene. As S’Express’s lead DJ, Mark is a living piece of that culture. Our friendship has motivated me, as a psychiatry trainee, to investigate the mental health impact of clubbing – one of my favourite off-work activities. In the late 1980s, the Second Summer of Love saw British youth flocking to parties, dancing to the rhythm of acid h

When I was fourteen, I was often pitted against my six-year-old sister. “Look at her, how much she cares about her father”, they would remark as my sister would watch my father take off his shoes, pick them up and keep them in their designated place. She was applauded for her work and hailed as the ‘domestic princess’, and her actions were construed as an act of love towards our father, leading to approval and validation.

There is a growing interest in hiking amongst young people being driven by a desire for stronger real-life connection and a dissatisfaction with online socialising. Could this trend be an encouraging symptom of increasing mental-health awareness, in a generation deeply affected by pandemic-era loneliness and chronic screen use? The media often sees young people as the generation most addicted to the digital world.

Sarah J. Maas, you’ve done it again. At this point, is there anything I don’t love about her? Like me, she loves sharks. What’s not to love about a woman who can create entire fictional worlds filled with magic, mayhem and characters who stay with you long after you’ve turned the final page? Following the anticipated release of A Court of Splintered Harmony, the newest instalment in the A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) series, on 27 October 2026, I’ve found myself reflect